LGBTI Asylum Seekers and Refugees: A Case of Double Jeopardy?

*LATE REGISTRATION ACCEPTED*

10 CPD Points

Email Anne Cormack ca79@greenwich.ac.uk or phone 07779 012859

5^th – 7^th July 2010 

To visit the conference website click here

To download the conference papers click below:

Call for Papers - pdf
Proposal Form - doc, RTF
Registration Form - doc, RTF

This conference will be launched at the House of Lords 5^th July 2010 (Hosted by Baroness Joyce Gould) and will be held at the University of Greenwich 6^th – 7^th July 2010. 

The conference is being organized by the University of Greenwich (School of Humanities and Social Sciences) & ICAS (Institute for the Converging Arts and Sciences) in collaboration with the Metropolitan Support Trust, UK Lesbian & Gay Immigration Group, Michael Bell Associates Research & Consultancy, Metro Centre and Stonewall Housing.

The platform for this conference is the Over Not Out – The Housing and Homelessness Issues Specific to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Asylum seekers (May 2009) research (commissioned by Metropolitan Support Trust) A copy of the report is available from http://www.refugeesupport.org.uk/

As the title suggests, this conference will explore the double jeopardy faced by LGBTI (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex) Asylum Seekers and Refugees as a result of: a home country’s position taken against any sexual orientation/gender identity different from the prescribed norm - which at its worst is the result of active state, religious, cultural, legal and political discrimination and criminalisation and at its least is the result of institutional intolerance.

It is a double jeopardy, in the second instance, when the person claims asylum because they are encountering high levels of homelessness, discrimination and exploitation due to their sexuality or gender identity. For example, the Over Not Out Report highlights three key findings of the research which are: 1. Support services for LGBT asylum seekers are poor. 2. Homophobic and transphobic attitudes are causing homelessness and ill-health. 3. Hate crimes against LGBT asylum seekers are not being reported.

This conference will also examine the range of political/philosophical questions that immediately come to bear: What does it mean to be a ‘citizen’ in the context of asylum seeking? What does it mean to have to ‘prove’ your sexuality or gender to professionals and experts as well as a hostile legal system? Or to have a Western gay lifestyle or gender identity imposed upon an individual in fear of their life? What does it mean to deal with Western ‘identity politics’ at a time when the very notion of identity and the political movements expressing ‘alternative’ identities seem also to be undergoing a re-think in terms of a postmodern / digital age economy? There is no doubt that digital technology and social media have had a profound influence in raising awareness about the plight of asylum seekers and refugees because it can transcend national borders. But how can it be more for LGBTI individuals?

The aim of this conference is to provide a forum for the transfer of knowledge among academics, legal practitioners, activists and voluntary and private sector service delivery organisations in order to make a lasting impact in the areas of social policy and international human rights.

We have applied to the Bar Standards Board and Solicitors Regulation Authority to have the conference accredited for 5.5 hours of CPD point for each day.  This will be confirmed in due course.

The conference will be organised around the two broad themes set out below:

First Jeopardy: Fleeing Persecution

A range of workshops and seminars exploring why people seek refugee status based on their sexual orientation or gender and what the legal and political responses are to those claims.